ing to Apple. Unlike personal electronics companies such as
Samsung who manufacture many of their own parts, Apple’s
supply chain is extremely complex.

With such varied sources, how does Apple ensure environmental safety, adequate labor conditions, and fair treatment
of workers from such varied sources? Apple hasn’t always had
the best track record, especially at Foxconn, the giant assembly plant in China that has a history marked by harsh working
conditions, child labor, and employee suicides.

However, Apple’s reputation is changing dramatically under
CEO Tim Cook’s leadership. Cook has expanded efforts to
audit each step in Apple’s supply chain. According to Apple’s
2017 Supplier Responsibility Progress Report, the company
conducted 705 audits of facilities in 2016, the most of any
year so far. In 2016, Apple removed 22 smelters (which mine
and refine raw materials used in iPhones, such as cobalt, tin,
tantalum, tungsten, and gold) from its supply chain. These
smelters are notorious for unloading massive amounts of
sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere, often
causing acid rain. The impacts of unchecked smelters are felt
in our rivers, streams, oceans, forests, soil, and water supplies. Apple now requires sources to meet strict guidelines
and has vowed to continue working only with smelters who
meet its high standards.

In response to efforts such as these, Greenpeace has heralded Apple as the greenest tech company in the world for
the past three years. Apple also has impressive plans for the
future. Currently, Apple uses 96 percent renewable energy for
its data centers, facilities, and retails stores. By 2020, Apple
has vowed to reach 100 percent sustainably sourced energy
and is also working to switch partners in its supply chain to
renewable energy.

Apple also has plans to move away from mining entirely,
aiming instead to make all new iPhones from recycled materials by expanding recycling technologies for aluminum to
include tin and copper. As far as paper and packaging, Apple
announced it has successfully achieved 99 percent sustainable sourcing through responsibly managed paper, bamboo,
and sugarcane waste.

A Day in the Life

While the sustainability of iPhone production falls on Apple,
the responsibility passes on to us as consumers as soon as
we purchase a device. The iPhone has become intimately integrated in our approach to daily life. We wake up to it, we say
goodnight to it, and our hands reach for it multiple times per
hour throughout the day. One key resource we use to keep
our iPhones alive and in service is electricity. When we plug
our devices in to a wall outlet at home or work, 65 percent of
that power comes from fossil fuels, according to the US Energy Information Agency.

Adjusting the source of your iPhone’s juice to solar can
displace daily charging from your energy bill and sweep clean
your conscience just by knowing you have a sun-powered
iPhone. At less than $50, the Anker 15W Dual USB PowerPort
Solar Charger is a great option that comes with two ports and
charges at the ideal 2. 1 amps under direct sunlight.

Here’s another factor to consider. Just think about how
many devices the iPhone has eliminated from most of our
lives: HD cameras, GPS devices, calculators, voice recorders,
mp3 players, video players, clocks, alarm clocks, pedometers,
calendars, handheld gaming devices, flashlights, internet
browsing devices, and a whole host of other devices that
third-party apps can replace. When we consider all the electricity, plastics, chargers, metals, packaging, and manufacturing we eliminate simply by owning one device, we must take
a moment to pat ourselves on the back and praise Apple’s
untiring commitment to making other devices obsolete. Even
without solar charging, you are doing the world a service by
using the greatest gadget killer in history.